A Model of Gravity in Our Solar System *

Abstract

Why do the planets orbit the sun without flying off into space? Do they move in perfect circles or do their orbits take a different shape? And how could you possibly do a science project about any of this—you can't do an experiment with the planets! However, you can build a model of our solar system that demonstrates the concept of gravity, using balls of different sizes to represent the sun and planets. Watch this video for an excellent introduction to the model:

Think about how you could turn this into a science project. How do the masses of the balls affect their behavior? What about their initial velocity and trajectory relative to the "sun"? If you cannot get your hands on a giant sheet of stretchy fabric, try building a smaller model using a stretchy t-shirt.

Credits

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Last edit date: 2019-11-26

Bibliography

• Henderson, T. (n.d.). Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation. The Physics Classroom. Retrieved September 28, 2018 from https://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/circles/Lesson-3/Newton-s-Law-of-Universal-Gravitation

Experimental Procedure

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